Dunphy: Global warming and body heat

John J. Dunphy Contributing columnist

Published
10:53 am CDT, Wednesday, October 10, 2018

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When film buffs such as myself hear the words “body heat,” the first thing that pops into our minds is the 1981 neo-film noir thriller that made Kathleen Turner a major star and marked the directorial debut of Lawrence Kasdan.

For Scott Wagner, the GOP candidate for governor of Pennsylvania, body heat has an entirely different meaning. He claims it’s one of the principal reasons for global warming.

In an address delivered in 2017 to an organization advocating the use of fossil fuels, Wagner offered a two-fold explanation for global warming. “We have more people. You know, humans have warm bodies. So is heat coming off?”

If Wagner’s hypothesis is true, perhaps solving the problem of global warming is as simple as engaging in activities that make us less hot and sweaty. We should cancel our memberships in health clubs and give up running as a form of exercise. Taking up to three cold showers daily should significantly reduce the amount of heat our bodies generate. And yes – “hot sex” must become an oxymoron.

The second explanation Wagner offered for global warming during his address was equally imaginative. “I haven’t been in a science class in a long time,” he readily conceded. “But the earth moves closer to the sun every year. You know – the rotation of the earth.” One might be tempted to conclude that Wagner didn’t do particularly well in those long-ago science classes. Our planet is decidedly not slowly falling into the sun.

Wagner grows angry when his knowledge of science is challenged. He also dislikes it when someone notes that he has received $200,000 in donations from the fossil fuel industry. At a public meeting, a young activist managed to incur Wagner’s wrath by doing both.

After noting that two-thirds of Pennsylvanians believe “climate change is an issue that needs to be addressed,” the activist reminded Wagner about his remark attributing climate change to body heat. She then asked if his refusal to take action regarding climate change could be attributed to his acceptance of that $200,000 from the fossil-fuel industry.

Wagner dodged her question and responded by telling this woman that she’s young and naive. His supporters in the audience laughed and applauded. When pressed to answer the activist’s question, Wagner responded by asking, “Are we here to elect a governor, or are we here to elect a scientist?” He answered his own question by saying, “Okay, I’m here to be the governor.”

This Republican’s sarcastic question actually makes a valid point. While we indeed elect politicians rather than scientists, we must demand that our elected officials be science-literate. Our well-being, as well as the well-being of future generations, depends on our politicians acknowledging the reality of climate change and the role that human activity plays in exacerbating it.

When I say “human activity,” perhaps I should emphasize that I’m referring to the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere from our use of fossil fuels. I’m not taking a cue from Wagner and suggested that giving off body heat is responsible for global warming.

Downplaying or even outright denying climate change is rampant among Republicans. Trump himself, in a December 6, 2013 tweet, stated, “Global warming is a total, and very expensive, hoax!” In a 2015 speech delivered in South Carolina, The Donald proclaimed, “Global warming…it’s a hoax…it’s a money-making industry.”

Writing for Clean Technica, Michael Barnard observed that climate change denial is endemic among conservative white American men. Indeed, “one of the groups where global warming denial is strongest is male white supremacists.“

At least Scott Wagner is no global warming denier. He believes it’s caused by body heat.

John J. Dunphy is the author of “Abolitionism and the Civil War in Southwestern Illinois” and “From Christmas to Twelfth Night in Southern Illinois.” He owns The Second Reading Book Shop in Alton.